This invention relates to a method and apparatus for skimming and containment of a floating liquid pollutant such as oil on a body of water.
The most effective way of containment and removal of a liquid pollutant which is spilled on a body of water and which floats on the surface thereof, has been to use floating barriers, commonly referred to as booms, to confine the pollutant to a collection area. Such booms generally are floating, elongated mechanical devices used to divert or stop the flow of the floating liquid pollutant. Booms presently on the market suffer from several failure mechanisms. One major failure mechanism pertains to underflow caused by currents or waves which carry the pollutant under the booms. Another failure mechanism, splashover, is caused by waves and carries the pollutant over the boom and outside the collection area. Other modes of failure include mechanical failures of structural members and joints and losses occasioned by improper anchoring and positioning of the booms.
For the most part, booms are classifiable into containment devices and diversionary devices. Both types of booms can be anchored in a body of water or towed through a body of water, but both become ineffective in controlling the movement of pollutants when the relative velocity of the water with respect to the booms exceeds approximately 1 knot for containment devices and 2 knots for diversionary devices. Currents in excess of 1 or 2 knots are frequently experienced, and accordingly, the need for a pollution collection device which will be effective in currents in excess of 2 knots is manifest.
Applicants are not aware of any prior art references which, in their judgment as one skilled in the boom art, would anticipate or render obvious the novel boom arrangement of the present invention; however, for the purposes of fully developing the background of the invention and establishing the state of the requisite art, the following are set forth: U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,650,406; 3,886,750 and 4,096,700.